If burgers had a personality, Johnny B's would be the main character. Juicy, messy in the best way, and absolutely worth the commitment. Paired it with a fresh, perfectly balanced salad so I could pretend I have my life together--and somehow it worked. But let's talk about the real MVP: Janelle. That woman doesn't just bartend, she orchestrates a whole experience. Drinks on point, energy unmatched, and the kind of service that makes you stay longer than you planned (no regrets). Come for the burger, stay for Janelle, and leave wondering why you don't eat here more often. read more

They didn't do anything wrong, but it felt like everything was just ok. There were tvs, but instead of sorting the padres game it had different games on. The burgers were fine, but the buns fell apart. The meat was tasty, but it dripped grease the entire time. Our server was friendly, but she seemed like she had too many tables to tend. It was okay across the board. Also a small bummer that a burger is $14 and then adding fries is another $4.50. I guess beef is just too expensive these days. read more

This bar and grill located in the heart of downtown La Mesa offers a full bar, pub eats, and plenty of big screen TVs for sports enthusiasts. I've stopped in for drinks throughout the years, but I finally tried some of their food the other night. We ordered the patty melt and wings to share between the two of us. The patty melt was decent, and the buffalo wings had a good kick. Service was a bit slow but it looked like only two cooks were behind the grill. I'm marking it "A-OK" in my book. read more

Johnny B's - Jumbo Wings - Buffalo and Lemon Pepper - Burgers Near Me - La Mesa, California

See all

Nice little spot! Plenty of TVs and indoor seating, with a sports bar environment. Menu is large with a lot to choose from. The jalapeño mozzarella sticks were fantastic! The jalapeno was the perfect amount a heat and they were so cheesy and delicious! The fries are so good and super crunchy! The taco salad was just okay to me, the ingredients were fresh and tasty but I wasn't a fan of the meat as it tasted like something you'd get at Taco Bell. The chips that came with it were great though! Service was fast and friendly. Parking can be a challenge to find but overall this was a nice pit stop for lunch. read more

See all

What a great find in Downtown La Mesa! I was at the La Mesa Market on a hot Saturday with the girl gang, and we needed a cool spot to escape the heat. We were so relieved to walk into this place and feel the refreshing blast of air conditioning! Already a win! It was my first visit, and things started off strong. A server promptly greeted us, handed out menus, and got our drinks going. My friends ordered the blue cheese burger with fries and the cheeseburger with fries. I went for the hickory bacon burger with onion rings. Everything was delicious; the burgers were juicy, and the fries and onion rings were perfectly crisp. I wanted to try the La Mesa Tiki Tok, but unfortunately, they were out of White Claw. Bit of a bummer, but I switched to the Cali Cream Nitro Brew, and my friend had the Guinness. Both were ice cold and hit the spot. My only suggestion would be to create a proper beer menu; maybe even one with pictures. We had to ask for a list, and while the staff was super nice and printed a receipt-style list for us, a visual menu would really enhance the experience. All in all, this was a fantastic visit. Great food, chill vibes, and friendly service. We'll definitely be back! read more

Johnny B's - Cali Cream Nitro - Burgers Near Me - La Mesa, California

I've been spending a lot of time out in La Mesa and I wanted to try one of the other restaurants, but they were between lunch and dinner and we couldn't get out onto the patio. So I had wanted to try Johnny B's and it was a good choice to go to! One of my friends had been before so I just followed his lead, and we went through the front and into the back patio. This was great cause there was not one around and Cako could just be herself. Sommer came out and greeted us with menus and was very nice to Cako. When she came back to take our order, she brought out a treat for Cako. Now she just watched to see when she was coming back...LOL! I got the Royal which is two smashed burgers and American cheese. I added bacon and a house salad instead of the usual fries. Daveed ordered the cheeseburger with nice crispy fries and added bacon too. My only complaint was that there wasn't enough 1000 Island dressing on mine, but that was minor. Next time I'll ask for extra! The burgers came out at a reasonable time and were really good. I liked that it wasn't a small wimpy salad like some places, and the burger was cooked perfectly medium well. Daveed enjoyed his too and there were plenty of fries to share, so I got some. I'm trying to watch my girlish figure...LOL! It was a very pleasant afternoon to be out on their patio. It was the end of Sommer's shift, but Ashley was great who took over for her. Great place to come to! Cako Approves! read more

See all

We've been here a few times meeting friends for lunch. We love their burgers and fries. We always ask for extra crispy fries and it's on point. They have lunch specials during the week and it's a bargain in today's market. We sat inside and enjoyed their TV's. It's not terribly loud so you can still chat with your friends. They also have outdoor seating as well. Our waitress was awesome. She took our order promptly and checked in on us. Our drinks were refilled as needed. This place seemed like a lot of loyal repeat customers. We felt welcomed. Overall, a nice place for food and watch a ballgame! Come catch up with friends. Parking is street parking with meters. If you're a local, you might know where and when to come. We had to walk a little due to a lunch crowd!! read more

Johnny B's - Burgers Near Me - La Mesa, California

We've been loyal customers of Johnny B's for years--it's our go-to spot for dinners with friends and family. This year, we decided to host our Fantasy Football draft there and even named it "Johnny B's VIPs," because it just felt right! As always, everything was amazing. Diana was fantastic to work with--she let me decorate, offered helpful suggestions on the menu and timing, and made the planning process so easy. Our server, Jennifer, went above and beyond. She was patient, attentive, and had such a great attitude--the kind of service every event planner hopes for. Johnny B's never disappoints, and we're already looking forward to coming back for dinner next week! read more

Johnny B's - Johnny B's VIPs Fantasy Football League - Burgers Near Me - La Mesa, California

Drop the ball this year for March Madness. They used to be my go to place for the morning games but they no longer open early so now I'll be looking for another establishment to watch the games. Buh bye . read more

Ambiance is dark , brewery type inside , bar type seating outside. We decided on this place when we went to the La Mesa Car show . It started out well , grabbed a menu from inside , our waitress bring us drinks , sun was shining , cars driving by .. then it wasn't great . We had my 8 year old grandson with us and figured food shouldn't be that long ... well it was ridiculously long . Over an hour to get a kids burger and one burger and fries . We were about to leave , I told the waitress I wanted the check and bam .. all of a sudden our food was ready . Food was okay .. not worth the wait , sun was down , wee were cold and not many cars left at this point to watch . We definitely will not eat here again ... I could have drive thru a fast food , received a similar burger , paid less and drive back before the food would've been ready ... read more

See all

I went in for the Monday Night Cheeseburger special which I believe is $13.95. Large amount of pretty good fries, burger was fine but under seasoned, bun was lightly toasted but also seemed a bit stale and dry. The lettuce and tomato, onion and pickles served on the side were decent enough. I had one pint of Coors Light. After tax and tip it was $26. Again, nice people, ... but for me , I can't justify the price . read more

The ambiance is sports bar burger place. It was a little loud but they had my game on so I enjoyed it. The food was fresh and made to order. The drinks were good, the lemon drop was one of the best one I ever had. The service was great. Old school service with a smile. I loved the whole environment from the TVs to the tables this place is fun and family friendly. read more

See all

My Bestie and I love coming to Johnny B's to split the wedge salad and a burger. They have amazing fries great mimosas and other specialty cocktails. The outside seating is great and the service is friendly and fast thanks Johnny B for being a pillar of the La mesa community for so long. We love being locals and coming to your establishment. read more

Nothing quite like it in all of La Mesa. So glad with all the changes in downtown La Mesa this staple has managed to stay put and I couldn't be happier. Always a great place for a burger & a beer. Service is always spot on and love the vibe here. Great place to meet up with friends anytime. read more

My family and I came here today for what we thought would be a quick lunch, but we ended up waiting for about an hour before we got our food. We came in around 11:15 am on a Saturday, and a waitress came over to take our drink orders shortly after. Nothing weird so far at this point in our lunch. About 15 minutes after putting our drink orders in, we still hadn't received our drinks. Maybe five minutes later, we finally were given our drinks. We waited maybe another 10-15 minutes before the waitress returned. We had been talking so long that I actually thought we already placed our food order. We hadn't yet. Here is what we ordered: Two patty melts One burger We didn't receive our food for maybe 30-35 minutes. People who arrived after us received their food before us, so I think the waitress may have forgotten to put our order in or it got lost somehow. The food itself is really delicious- I've only ever had their patty melts though. They toast the rye bread really nicely and put a good amount of cheese and caramel iced onions. The beef patty isn't overcooked either. Their fries are also the kind with crispy batter on the outside. They give a thousand island sauce on the side, as well as a pickle spear. I have no complaints about the food, I really liked it each time I've gotten food here. However, the service today was disappointing. read more

My daughter is visiting from Athens, Greece, and I wanted to treat her to lunch at one of her favorite restaurants, Johnny B's. It was pretty busy when we walked in, and a sign indicated that we should seat ourselves. We found a high-top table and Janelle provided us with menus. Although she was rather busy, she was able to take our order in about 5 or so minutes. My order was the Royal Burger ($13.25) and a side of fries ($4.50). The burger was presented pre-assembled, the bun (with lettuce, sliced tomato, pickles and onion) next to two patties. The meat was fairly well done, although I would have preferred medium or medium-rare. Actually, I was not asked how I preferred them cooked. So the meat was a bit dry. The side of fries was enormous, although for the price perhaps just adequate. They were really delicious, among the best restaurant fries ever. Beautiful color, crispness and taste. My daughter and I split them, and there were still leftovers. The table had the usual condiments and other accessories. The noise level in the room was fairly raucous, although no games were being watched. Diners were required to fairly shout across their table to each other, but that's Johnny B's for you. Good service, good burgers, excellent fries. read more

I ordered the grilled chicken sandwich thinking, ok, it's slightly healthy right? The menu says it comes on "hand sliced" TOASTED sour dough. My dish came and it was a greasy mess, grilled on a griddle, not toasted. The lack of care that went into playing this did it. Sandwich cut in and half thrown onto a white plate. That's all. Not one single piece of garnish to even try and make the dish look appetizing. When we left, we walked past the Mexican place next door and thought, well, I guess that's where we should've gone. Please change the wording on your menu so people know exactly what they're getting. read more

To start, my husband and my first time at Johnny B's was awesome!! The food is delicious!! Can't go wrong with the Goober burger. We can't say enough about SUMMER!!! She's an absolute GEM! She made us laugh and quickly got my eyes on my first drink "lemon drop!" Which is my go-to drink there! Summer didn't treat us like regular customers, but treated us like family. Everytime we come in, Summer never forgets who we are. Waves at us from a distance and will stop to give a hug. Always has a smile! We've had the pleasure to have Summer service us back to back. You have an amazing crew who always has a smile on their faces, but Summer is our #1 girl! A hard worker and it shows!! Thank you Summer!!! We love you girl! Keep up the good work!! See you soon! Have that lemon drop drink ready! Hugs! read more

Went in for lunch and got the burger combo. Pepper-jack, fries, and a sprite for $15. It was bomb. Wish I had more burgers to devour from this place. Have been before years ago but will always go back. Yum. read more

Johnny B's - Pepper-Jack cheeseburger(mayo added) fries, sprite, and water. With ranch on the side. - Burgers Near Me - La Mesa, California

This place is all around worth the visit. It's excellent food that's decently priced, and has outstanding service and a really fun atmosphere. I ordered the wedge salad and the patty melt, and 10/10 would order again. read more

Johnny B's - Wedge Salad - Burgers Near Me - La Mesa, California

Started coming with our "Old Friends, New Places" group and have been coming back for years. The Blue Cheese Burger is so good!! Nachos are also amazing! Atmosphere is fun, typical bar food, but really good place! Unfortunately our lowest score or thought each time is the service has never been that great. Don't let that stop you from trying it out! read more

I ate at Johnny B's on a Friday. I had a delicious chicken sandwich. The service was excellent, fast and checked in on us. The others had hamburgers and they raved about the crispy french fries! I'd go back again!! read more

Finally a restaurant that knows how to use the fryer properly! The onion rings; CRISPY, the fries had a GOLDEN CRUNCH, and the chips... PERFECT. I'm so tired of getting sad limp fry's when I eat out at other places so I was super impressed when everything came out great without having to ask for it well done. Great job Johnny B. read more

I like burgers with peanut butter on them, but restaurants that serve them are hard to find. Especially good ones. Johnny B's doesn't serve good ones. There was about a 1/4 teaspoon of chunky peanut butter on my burger. After I spread this fistful of PB across the top bun I could hardly taste it at all. Is the kitchen manager afraid they'll run out? That doesn't make sense because the 'Goober Burger' is the only menu item that features peanut butter. I did get plenty of fries that I didn't finish. I came to have a burger with more than a laughable amount of PB and some fries, not 2 pounds of them. After my $4 Coke and tip it came to $27.87. Unfortunately this was my first and last visit. read more

Johnny B's - I need more peanut butter, not fries. - Burgers Near Me - La Mesa, California

This place is a shell of what it used to be. Set your expectations for SLOW service and mediocre food at high prices.

If anyone went to Johnny Bs today wanting to use their Costco gift card Synergy, and was refused... know that they are breaking the law under federal guide lines Valid gift cards in the state of California cannot be refused. Which these cards are until 2 01 2026. Bad business Johnny Bs. Will not go back read more

Saturday night and it wasn't too busy. Chicken tenders were good, jalepeno poppers were just OK. No plates delivered with our appetizers, so we basically just ate them off of napkins on top of the table. Waitress didn't check with us after dropping off the appetizers, so there was no opportunity to request plates. Kids and husband enjoyed their burgers. I ordered the "steak sandwich" which was terrible!! An unseasoned slab of plain steak on top of a thin piece of bread, that was soggy in a minute. The steak tasted like feet (or like "bathroom" as my teen described). We didn't eat anymore after our first bites. Should be removed from the menu. The side salad was plain, had pink edged lettuce clearly not fresh, the fries were basic and fine. Service was ok, not great. I might try it 1more time to get the patty melt as I'm not a burger enthusiast and there weren't many other options. read more

We love Johnny B's! We have been customers for almost 20 years. This year they let us have host our fantasy football draft on the back patio. Jennifer took care of us and made sure we were cared for the whole time! We recommend Johnny B's for a quick drink or sit down meal! read more

The burgers and fries here are sooo good. The lunch special is such a steal of a deal too. (Ends at 3pm) Lots of beers on tap to choose from. read more

Great place! Food is amazing. Service is outstanding. Ambience is everything you look for when going to a restaurant for fun.

Decent type beer/cocktail/bar vibe. It seems to be more of a restaurant, really. For a spot that seems to be more a burger bar I was really disappointed. I went twice but I doubt there will be a third visit. I was really disappointed with both of the times I had the food. The burgers seemed like they were frozen patties, they just threw on the grill. In SD, it's pricey here. So when we go out, we want something really good. For one, it took them a while to get my order. That's fine really, but if I'm waiting for over 10 minutes, I expect it to be better than good. The both times I got fries, I was okay with them. They needed more seasoning but it was decent. HOWEVER, the burgers weren't too good. I felt like I could make better ones at home. I wasn't impressed by the taste at all. I went twice to make sure but it definitely wasn't worth the $15 cost. For a extra patty, it was an extra $5 witch at "In and out" that is down the road, I could get a whole burger for the same price and the wait would be similar. To the owners, please get things better. Right now, it simply isn't worth it. read more

We went to Johnny B's during the Holiday at the Village event in downtown La Mesa. My party and I recognized that there were 2 extra beers charged onto our bill, so we corrected the bartender (Eliana). She acknowledged that those beers should not be on our bill. When she brought the bill back, there was another extra beer charged to the bill that we did not order. We have been to Johnny B's before and have never experienced anything like this. We hope this doesn't happen again. read more

Love Jonny b's. Food is great! And love the new bar.i also love all the tv.s and the staff is alway so friendly.

First off our server was amazing, loved her and we had great service. This was our first time eating here and our first impression was the prices seemed pretty high. We ordered burgers and for the price thought they would be large, filling, specialty burgers. Unfortunately they were smaller than expected, the meat patties were extremely thin and the lettuce they used was just a big iceberg wedge. The burgers are a La cart ( I believe ours were 13.99) and then it's another $4.50 to add fries. I would suggest this place for drinks and apps but not entrees. Around $55 for 2 burgers, 1 order of fries and 2 beers. read more

See all

My daughter and doggo were craving burgers. So we decided to try something new close to home. All the staff's is super sweet, especially when we order an extra patty for my doggo. They deliver her big juicy meat patty that she devoured in seconds. We sat outside as we had the doggo. But, this looks like a chill and good place to hang out. We got the choco martini, the steak sandwich, and the burger. My daughter devoured the burger. Everything was delicious. My steak is a tad bit well done. The fries are the best tasting fries I've had. The choco martini is delicious and not too sweet. Definitely would get it again. All in all, it was a great experience. All of us enjoyed our food, especially my doggo. She's going to want to go everyday, lol. read more

See all

I usually have a good experience at Johnny B's, but this time around my burger was way over cooked (dry like card board) and the home made chips weren't the same either. Our usual server normally asks me how I want my burger cooked, but today's server didn't ask me at me all. Not sure if it was just me or maybe they had a different cook/staff in general. read more

Well, for one the food is great especially a burger with an ice cold beer! It's great when I sit down and the waitresses know what I like to drink without even having to tell them. Great memories! Did I mention the TVs ? All of them?!!! Love this read more

Food was great as always cooks are always on spot. As I like to cook I can tell when something is well made. As far as the service waitresses make the mistake that because you are dining alone that means less tip and more work for nothing. Sadly this is what happened to me today and I ended up tipping the bus person because she is the one that brought me a container and then offered to cash me out. Where is my waitress did not offer me water nor did she return to check on the food or if I wanted something else. So I wrote on the check these two errors. I'm a very generous Tipper when I am served well I usually tip 20%. Today I tipped her nothing read more

The service was nonexistent. Our server never checked to see how anything was which may be a good thing because our burger was completely overcooked and I would've sent it back . So she wants a tip to drop off the wrong food? I think that's called fast casual. They charge 2.5% to use a credit card? This is getting ridiculous. When did I have to start paying restaurants fees to run their business? $7 for a side of onion rings with my burger? Thanks for telling me about the up charge. Hard pass on this place. $35 for a combo meal that was worse than McDonald's. Update- the owner sent me a gift card after a defensive phone conversation with a note (written by someone else) asking us to try them again and consider taking down my review, which I won't be doing. I hope they use these pieces of feedback as opportunities to better their business vs. asking people to take experience feedback down. read more

Place was good. Got a burger and BLT. Would come back again. Nice chill spot for family. Service was good too.